


Regards

by traitorhero



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Episode 57 Spoilers, Episode 58 Theories, Gen, Rakshasa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-20
Updated: 2016-06-23
Packaged: 2018-07-16 03:43:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,322
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7250593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/traitorhero/pseuds/traitorhero
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There are always consequences for actions. Fiends never forget, never forgive, and always demand retribution.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Revenge

The monster was still staring at him from behind Gilmore’s face. 

That probably wasn’t what he should have taken away from the situation, but everything and nothing made sense at the moment. Vax blinked in pain as he struggled to breathe. The image in front of him blurred between the face of his friend and the fiend that wore it as he reached for the dagger embedded in his abdomen. Before he could grab the hilt of the blade, the creature withdrew it with a twist of its wrist. Nonchalantly, the rakshasa flicked the blood off of the double-sided dagger, splattering it across the stone of the balcony. 

“I’ve had weeks to dream of what I would do when I found you again, Vax’ildan,” the rakshasa growled, lowering the blade to its side. 

Vax pressed his hand to his gut, the sticky warmth of blood seeping through his fingers. He drew in a ragged breath, falling to his knees as he felt something move under his palm. Catching himself with his other hand, Vax craned his head to look up at the creature. The illusion around its form seemed to flicker, fading entirely between one second and the next.

“But death is not enough for what you have done to me,” it said, sheathing the dagger and crouching in front of him. The rakshasa looked down at him, something that could have passed for a smile crossing its feline features. “You will suffer before you die.”

“I’m not afraid of dying,” Vax said. 

“Not of your own death, no,” it agreed. “But there’s something...”

Its blue eyes seemed to film over for a moment. An uncomfortable sensation trailed across and under VAx’s skull, as if a million ants were running across his brain. 

“Get out of my head,” he snarled. 

The smile turned into a full grin, showing off its fangs as it stood again. “You’ve been busy while I was away, haven’t you,  _ Champion _ ? Such a high price for something that you’re going to lose so soon again.”

It took a second for him to understand what the rakshasa meant. Vax pressed his hand tight against the wound in his gut as he glared at the creature. The smile was almost mocking as he tried to stand, only to fall to his knees again. 

“You will not touch her,” Vax told it. 

“Oh, I’m not the one who will,” the rakshasa said. 

Its form rippled, only for Vax to see a mirror image of himself standing there. It lifted a hand, as if admiring its new form, before reaching down and grabbing his jaw. He tried to pull away, only to feel the tips of its claws press against his skin. It smiled with his face, reaching down with its other hand to tuck a piece of hair behind his ear. Its claw ran down the outside of his ear, stopping on his earring.

“A peculiar piece of magic, allowing you communicate over short distances.” it said, letting go of him. It tapped the diamond with an illusory finger, the claw underneath clinking against the stone. It contemplated the earring for a moment, before pocketing it.  “ I’ll hold onto it for you. After all, we wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise.”

“If you think you’re going to get within even five feet of her,” Vax threatened.

“I will,” it said, the voice an echo of his own. “My dear sister won’t think anything of me coming to visit in the middle of the night.”

It paused, tilting its - Vax’s - head slightly. A throaty chuckle, a sound Vax had never heard himself make, escaped it. 

“I wonder if she’ll curse your name as I carve her heart out of her chest,” it said. “She’ll die hating you, and you won’t be there to stop it this time.”

“I won’t let you -”

The surge of anger at the rakshasa’s words gave him enough strength to get to his feet. Something inside his abdomen moved worryingly, pressing against the meat of his hand as he strained to keep himself upright. A cold sweat broke out across his brow as more blood seeped through his fingers. The creature looked annoyed as he swayed on his feet, wrinkling its nose.

“Stay down and  _ behave _ .”

At the last word, the robe that he had taken as a gift pushed down on him with what felt like the weight of a hundred Grog’s. His legs, already unsteady, collapsed underneath him. His head smacked against the stonework, making the world spin for a moment in pain. Vax tried to lift the hand not pressed against his stomach, only for the robe to hinder the movement. 

“Something I found while I travelled,” the rakshasa told him as it crouched down by his head. “A simple enhancement that increases the gravity of the one who wears it, activated by a word of my own choosing. It was a secondary precaution, in case you discovered me before we could have this delightful talk.”

Vax glared at it as he forced his hand a few inches forward. The effort left him gasping for air as the stone warmed against his cheek. He could feel the blood from the wound the rakshasa gave him spreading outside of his fingers, no doubt staining the stonework. Percy wouldn’t be happy about having that cleaned. Blood was a murder to clean up. 

“No words for me, Vax’ildan? No fruitless attempts to refute me?” When he didn’t answer, it sighed. “No? Then know this: after her, I will kill the druid, and the rest of your band, including that cleric who escaped my grasp. Any descendents of your little group will die. Only when none of them are left, and your legacies are scattered in ashes, will my revenge be complete.“

The utter conviction in his voice sent a wave of terror down Vax’s spine. The fact that the monster had returned so quickly after they had killed it spoke to its power. The memories of children’s stories that his mother had told him, that he had later read in his father’s library, came flooding back to him. Even if they could send him back, could kill the rakshasa again, there was nothing stopping it from returning and finding them again. 

Mentally he cursed the person who had contracted them in the Slayer’s Take. They had signed a death warrant for the ones who went after the creature. Such creatures never forgave, or forgot what had been done to them. 

“Do you feel it?” the rakshasa asked, studying him. “That utter helplessness? Good. Then I, Hotis, give you my regards, Vax’ildan. Whatever comes after for you, know that you will not be alone for long.”

With that, the creature, Hotis, stood up, and stepped over him. Vax dug his fingers into the grout, desperately trying to pull himself towards the departing rakshasa. Before he had even pulled himself an inch, it vanished through the doorway, leaving him alone on the balcony. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mostly because I couldn't help myself, because it isn't Thursday yet.
> 
> Also, since we have no idea what the robe Hotis gave Vax is, I made something up. I call it the Robe of the Well.


	2. Recognition

Trinket pushed his head into her hands, making a few low noises as she scratched behind his ears. As he tried to push himself more into her lap, Vex rolled her eyes and patted his nose. A yawn interrupted her motions, and she silently bemoaned Trinket’s stomach problems. Glancing out the window, she could see a few stars peeking out from behind thin clouds, meaning that she had only been able to gather a few hours of rest. 

“So what did you convince the cook to slip you?” she whispered. 

Trinket flicked his ears, his expression almost bashful. Vex chuckled, sliding her hand down his jaw to scratch under his chin. He relaxed even more, his dark brown eyes meeting hers before closing. His weight, half on her as it was, was slightly uncomfortable, but did provide some benefits. The room she was in was as warm as it could be, with a small fire still burning in the hearth, but even still there were some drafts. Trinket could be an excellent additional blanket and heat source, even if he filled her bed with tufts of fur.

The knock at her door drew her out of her meandering thoughts. Trinket lifted his head, his nostrils flaring as he tried to scent the air. A low growl built in his throat as the handle turned. Vex reached for her bow, trusting Trinket’s instincts. It sat on her bedside table, and she cursed silently at its unstrung state.

“Vex?”

Vax poked his head around the side of the door, his eyes almost unerringly finding hers. At his appearance, Trinket’s growl grew louder, and he raised himself onto the bed fully. Vex swung her legs to the side, barely avoiding his claws as they ripped through the quilt, and stood beside him. She shot a confused look at her twin as she ran a hand down Trinket’s back to try to calm him. 

“Is something wrong?” she asked, raising her voice to be heard over the rumbling growl in Trinket’s throat.

“I just wanted to see you,” Vax said, stepping into the room fully. 

He shut the door behind him, which made the hair on the back of her neck stand up. Vax almost always refused to shut doors behind himself, claiming that it offered a chance of escape if all other options were unavailable. And her room had no other exit points.

“Something the matter, brother?” she asked. “I thought we were past this whole visiting each other at night thing after you went to the temple.”

Vax didn’t answer, his eyes instead locked with Trinket’s. Seeing his distraction, Vex grabbed her bowstring, letting and end fall to the floor. Balancing as well as she could, she deftly slid it onto the end of her bow, pulling the line taut as it settled into the groove. Vax’s eyes darted to her, his lips turned up in a scowl she had never seen on his face before. Almost as soon as she saw it, it was gone, replaced by a forced grin. 

“Your bear doesn’t seem to like me.”

“Well, someone fed him something that upset his stomach,” Vex shot back. “I wonder who that could have been.”

“You got me on that one,” Vax agreed with a low chuckle. 

Vex narrowed her eyes at the easy admission. “What was it this time? More chocolate? You know he doesn’t do well with chocolate.”

“Just a few herbs I knew would make him ill,” he said. “Though I am surprised he’s doing as well as he is. I thought he’d be too sick to smell anything by now.”

“What?”

“It seems like my original plan isn’t going to work,” Vax said. He stepped closer, only for Trinket to snap at him. “I am disappointed about that. But, at the end of the day,” he paused, looking out the window. “Or night, I suppose, as long as you are dead, it doesn’t really matter.”

“What the fuck are you on about?” Vex asked, taking a step back and behind Trinket. She narrowed her eyes, trying to focus on him as much as she could. The dim light from the fireplace seemed to cross his form strangely, warping shadows into strange places across his face. “Who are you?”

“No one you would know,” the person wearing Vax’s face said. “Your brother owes me a debt in blood, and I intend to collect in full.”

“Are you from the Clasp?” she asked, looking across the room for an exit. 

The door, closed as it was, wasn’t an option. She scanned the rest of the room, barely stopping herself from looking at the glass window behind him. It was thin, being the cause for most of the drafts in the room. Percy had apologized and offered her a different room when she had mentioned it, but she had refused. Her stubbornness had seemed to annoy him, but he had let it go with a mutter about replacing them at a later time. In the multitude of projects he kept running, it had no doubt been near the bottom, since they had not been replaced.

“No, I have no dealings with them,” he said, waving it off. “My quarrel is with your brother, and those he considers close to him.”

“Where is he? What did you do to him?”

“Nothing you need to worry about, my dear,” the person said with a chuckle. “Just be a good girl for Hotis, and  _ stay still _ .”

Vex felt all of her muscles tense up without her control. Just as quickly, the feeling vanished, and she shrugged off the man’s attempt to dominate her. She locked eyes with him, letting a sneer cross her lips. He looked confused for a moment, which gave her enough time to grab her quiver and sling it across her back.

“Did you really think that would work?” she said. She put her left hand on Trinket’s back, lightly tugging his fur in the direction of the window. He turned his head to look at her, before returning his gaze to their intruder. 

The man, Hotis,  snarled, a sound similar to the one emanating from Trinket escaping his throat. His form seemed to flicker with the odd noise, letting her see flashes of orange and white. Vex took another step back, holding onto her half-strung bow tightly in her right hand. Trinket followed her, his paws hitting the floor as he backed off of the bed. Hotis took a step forward as they retreated, a cruel smile forming on his lips. Vex steeled herself as he leapt onto the bed that they had vacated, and threw herself backwards.

The glass shattered under her weight, and she toppled towards the lawn below. Vex tucked into a roll as she hit the ground, feeling the shards of glass rain down on her back. She got to her feet and turned to the broken window. Trinket followed her out, landing heavily on his paws with a moan. As she worriedly looked at where they had come from, she finished stringing her bow. 

A warning growl from Trinket was all the warning she got before Hotis leapt out of the window at her. He missed her by scant inches, and she danced away from his hands as he swiped at her. Vex whistled sharply to Trinket, before breaking into a dead run towards the wall surrounding the lawn. Behind her, she could hear the hearty smack as he cannonballed into Hotis, and the sound of the man hitting the ground heavily. 

Stopping just before the wall, Vex turned around. Trinket was already running towards her, the edges of his fur stained green from his unarmored attack. Hotis was behind him, already struggling to his feet. As he did, the face of her brother faded from him, leaving behind the visage of a monster she had only heard of in stories. The tiger-faced Hotis snarled at them both, its  clawed hands flexing in anger. 

Vex reached for her earring, utter terror gripping her as she watched the creature stalk towards her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rakshasa attempts _Dominate Person_. It's super ineffective. One spell down.


	3. Reaction

Keyleth gestured towards the fireplace, stoking the flames a little higher with a bit of druidic magic. The room was far from cold, but the added light was a boon as she flipped through the pages of her alchemy book. The contents of the book, however, were doing little to grab her attention. The words of the Sun Tree, its mentioning of being placed in Whitestone by Pelor, had dragged her out of slumber. After a few minutes of tossing and turning, she had given up on getting back to sleep. The book had seemed like a good distraction, but even its dry words did little to calm her mind. 

She sighed, setting the book on the small end table beside her chair. Keyleth brought her knees up to her chin and balanced her chin between them as she stared into the flames. The whole situation, between Vax’s oath to the Raven Queen and the Sun Tree’s belief in Pelor, didn’t make sense at all. The gods weren’t on this plane, and whatever influence they exerted was through those who believed in them. Whatever situations that they, Vox Machina, currently dealt with, the gods had no party to it. The aid they gave, while appreciated, did nothing for the blood that soaked their hands... her hands.

A muffled growl broke Keyleth out of the spiral her thoughts had been taking. Waving her hand, she smothered the flames until they were barely flickers along the wood. The sound came again, this time lower and with a familiar rumble. Keyleth stood, a frown marring her face as she walked to the wall she shared with Vex. As she pressed her ear against the thick wood, she could barely hear what sounded like two people talking, before Trinket growled again. A second growl, different from the noises that she was used to hearing from the bear, followed it. 

Something about the second noise unsettled her, and Keyleth walked over to her door, grabbing her staff from where she had left it leaning against the wall. As she opened her door, the faint sound of breaking glass made her turn back towards the wall. The snarl grew louder, and Keyleth threw her door open, the force of it making her nightdress swirl around her legs. Vex’s door was closed, but opened easily enough when she tried the handle. 

Vax looked back at her, a wild snarl on his face. The image seemed to flicker, and for an instant, she saw a tiger instead. It growled at her, before leaping out the already shattered window. Keyleth stood frozen for a moment, trying to reconcile what she had just saw with what she knew. Looking around the room, she couldn’t see Vex or Trinket, which meant that they must have gone out the window before the creature.

“Jenga!”

Vex’s panicked shout drew her back to the present. Keyleth stayed in the door for a moment, trying to see if the others had heard Vex’s cry for help. A muffled thump from Grog’s room let her know that at least one other person had, and she dashed to the window. The creature, the form so familiar to her but the name escaping her, was stalking towards Vex and Trinket. Keyleth looked at the distances as she tried to think of a spell, of anything, that would halt the creature’s advance. 

Her mind seized on one, and Keyleth lifted her hands, picturing the fire that had blazed in her room. The creature stopped and skipped backwards as a wall of flame sprung up between it and her friends. The flames nipped at the now visible fur, but appeared to do no damage as it patted the sparking patches of its clothes.

“Keyleth? Is that you?”

“Yeah,” Keyleth said, reaching up and grabbing her earring. The creature turned away from the wall of flame, the light that flared behind it casting shadows on its face as it looked towards her.

“Keyleth, it’s a rakshasa,” Vex told her. “It’s here because of my brother, and I don’t know what to do. I have my bow and a few arrows, but-”

“Wait, what’s going on?” Scanlan interrupted. “I heard something about a rakshasa?”

“It’s attacking me!” Vex shouted. “That makes it bad! Now help me kill it before it kills me!”

Keyleth winced at Vex’s shout. Two arrows flew through the fire wall, hitting the leather cloak of the rakshasa. One glanced off falling to the ground, while the other shattered and scattered across the ground. The rakshasa turned around as they impacted, and began to walk towards the wall of fire again. Vaguely, she could hear the others chattering over the earrings, but none of them were going to get to where she was in time to help. 

Closing her eyes, Keyleth jumped out of the window, shifting into a sabre-toothed tiger as she fell. She the ground at a run, leaping towards the rakshasa with her claws extended. They snagged its  cloak, and tore it from the monster’s back. The rakshasa hissed in annoyance, barely keeping its feet. It whirled around towards her, baring its fangs in a snarl. She returned the display, the muscles in her chest rumbling as she growled.

“I remember you,” it hissed. “That shape does not hide the form of one who killed me.”

Without meaning to, Keyleth took a half-step back. The contract she had agreed to, the one she and Vax had both signed, came flooding back to her mind. The wall of flame went out as her mind recalled the mission, leaving Vex and Trinket without a shield. 

“You can’t kill me here, little druid,” Hotis said with a dark chuckle. “But for right now, why don’t you  _ work with me _ ?”

The suggestion curled around her mind, and, for an instant, Keyleth almost complied. Her tail twitched as her gaze went to Vex and Trinket, before she shuddered, and shook the effect of the spell. Hotis seemed to realize that its spell had failed, a low rumbling growl escaping its mouth. Keyleth snapped at it, barely missing its fingers as it pulled away. 

An arrow appeared in Hotis’ shoulder as it stepped backwards, catching it on fire. Hotis grunted in pain as he tore the arrow out. Another lodged above where the it had hit, but unlike the first, it didn’t seem to cause him as much pain. A loud gunshot echoed around the courtyard, staggering Hotis a few feet back towards Vex. 

Keyleth turned, spying Percy in Vex’s broken window. A few other figures looked to be behind him, heading towards the battle. Hotis glared up at Percy, although she could see a small bit of confusion in the look. At his distraction, Keyleth concentrated and called fire to lick along her claws as she pounced on him. This time she felt her claws sink into flesh as she dragged them across Hotis’ body. His backwards facing paws slashed down at her in retaliation, but she danced just outside of his reach, the claws missing her by centimeters.

The sound of retort almost made her miss the tremble in the ground as Grog jumped down from the second story window. His warhammer was already aflame, and a feral look had overtaken his face. Hotis stumbled backwards, the shot from Bad News seeming to have done no serious damage. As it stood to its full height, its eyes tracked over the battlefield, taking in the number of enemies it now faced. With Grog bearing down on it, Hotis brought up it's hands, whispering words in a language she didn’t recognize. 

It vanished from her sight as Grog came to a stop beside her. Grog’s head swung from side to side as he tried to see the now invisible creature. Her nose flared as she tried to scent it, but she only smelled the scent of burnt grass and Grog. The dark did nothing to help her catch sight of it, Grog’s flaming warhammer only giving a small area of dim light. 

Trinket’s yowl was the only warning they had. Keyleth turned towards the ranger and her companion, only to see the rakshasa in front of Vex. It pulled away, letting Trinket’s claws rake uselessly against its robed arm. It didn’t vanish, the spell broken when it had attacked. As it moved away, Keyleth caught sight of Vex, and the  four lines of crimson blossoming across the light blue of her nightshirt. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keyleth is a very interesting character to write, honestly. And I totally get the problems Marisha has now with keeping spells straight. Druids have a lot of spells.
> 
> **Just some spells/damage breakdown, since I've been rolling for a lot of what's happened:**  
>  1\. Keyleth - Wall of Fire at 5th level. Hotis takes no damage because of the rakshasa _Limited Magic Immunity >_  
> 2\. Vex - 2 arrows, neither through the blazing bowstring. Neither beat Hotis' AC of 16.  
> 3\. Keyleth - Claw Attack. It fails to beat Hotis' AC.  
> 2\. Vex - Arrow with Blazing Bowstring: 16+5 with no other bonuses because she isn't wearing any armor. Hotis did not dodge, and took 7 points of fire damage, as well as 2 points of piercing damage, since the arrow is technically magical with that effect (I believe, not quite sure on that)  
> 3\. Vex - Regular Arrow: 12+5, which is just narrowly past the rakshasa AC of 16. However, since it is not magical, the 6 points of piercing damage do not take effect. No damage is taken by Hotis.  
> 4\. Hotis - Suggestion on Keyleth. Keyleth saves from the spell with a 14+6 (wisdom modifier), and resists its suggestion to help it fight Vex and Trinket.  
> 5\. Vex - 2 more arrows, neither from the Blazing Bowstring  
> 5\. Percy - Bad News. Since Bad News is not magical, it does no damage, but does stagger Hotis from the impact.  
> 6\. Keyleth - Claw Attack: 15+6=21, which beats Hotis' AC. She does 15 points of damage, plus an additional 4 points of damage from her fire hands.  
> 7\. Hotis - Invisibility  
> 8\. Hotis - Claw Attack against Vex, which hits because she isn't wearing armor. Vex suffers 14 points of damage, and is now _Cursed_.
> 
>  
> 
> **So, HP so far for everyone in battle:**  
>  Keyleth - (Half-Elf form) 99 HP, (Minxy) 52 HP  
> Grog - 180 HP  
> Vex - 81 HP and is now Cursed  
> Percy - 106 HP  
> Hotis - 83 HP (using the Monster Manual stats, which place it at 110 HP originally)


	4. Refrain

There were very few tales that Scanlan had been loathe to tell over the years. An obvious one to any who knew him would have been the epic poem of the goblin sieges. The few times anyone had requested it, he had feigned no knowledge of it. Dr. Dranzel had allowed him the peculiarity, knowing his history and hatred for the despicable creatures.

It hadn’t been until Grog had requested it that Vox Machina had seen him truly angry. He had disappeared from them for a few days afterwards, cooling his heels in the bosoms of quite a few ladies of the evening and tankards of ale. Vax had taken him aside after he had returned, asking him a few vague questions before assuring him that no one would ask about it again. The assurance, and Grog’s fumbling apology when they were travelling, had been enough for him to open up a bit to his companions. The twins had shared a look of pain at his mention of losing his mother, but in the same vein of kindness, he hadn’t asked either. 

As he came to a stop beside Percy, who was hurriedly reloading Bad News, Scanlan almost wished that he had shared the other tale he hated. The story of Beatrice and the Rakshasa, which served as a warning and a message to any who would have dealings with the creatures. He hadn’t been paying much attention when Vax and Keyleth told of their quest for the Slayer’s Take, although the word rakshasa had crossed their lips. If he had paid more attention, had remembered sooner, maybe what was currently happening would have been different. 

Scanlan scanned their impromptu battlefield, trying to gauge what was happening.  Vex was hunched forwards across the lawn, black lines soaking into the front of her nightshirt, as the rakshasa. Pike rushed past him, nearly knocking him out of the window, and jumped out towards the lawn. She rolled as she hit the ground, keeping her mace in her hand as she dashed towards the fight. 

“Have you got a plan?” he asked Percy.

“I don’t even know what’s going on,” he shouted back. “What’s a rakshasa doing in Whitestone?”

“Apparently it’s trying to kill us.”

“Well, it should get in line. Do you have anything to throw at it?”

“Not really,” Scanlan replied. “I only have enough power for one spell that might hit it. Anything less and it will shrug it off.”

Percy muttered something under his breath as he lined up for another shot at the creature. “If I can distract it, will that help?”

“Maybe?”

“Then do it. I’ll let the others know.”

Scanlan nodded, leaning out the window to judge the distance to the ground. He took a deep breath and dropped down. A shard of glass made a shallow cut across his palm, but he shook it out before running as fast as he could towards the ongoing battle. As he got closer, he saw Trinket put himself between Vex and the monster, missing it with a swipe of his claws. A loud retort of a gun echoed through the courtyard, and the rakshasa turned with the impact. Another shot rang out, but instead of falling, as any rational creature would, the rakshasa kept his feet, an almost smug look on his face.

“My shots aren’t doing anything,” Percy’s voice said over the earring.

Keyleth, in her Minxy form, turned to look at the window. Her distraction allowed the rakshasa to race forward and lacerate her hide with its claws. She roared in pain, whipping around and sinking her fangs into the shoulder of the monster. It pushed her away, hissing in pain as thick crimson blood leaked from the wound. An arrow flew over its shoulder and splintered against the ground next to Pike, while a second spiked through the ear of the beast. It reached up and snapped the arrow in two, only a thin coating of blood on the shaft showing that it had actually passed through the skin. 

Before Scanlan could begin to cast his spell, Grog rushed around Keyleth. Spittle flew from his mouth as he brought his warhammer up and cracked it against the side of the rakshasa. It gasped in pain, blood flying from its mouth at the ferocity of the attack. The flames of the hammer leapt onto the creature, burning on the leather armor that it wore. It seemed more annoyed at the flames, hurriedly patting them out as it faced the angry goliath. 

Keyleth reached forward as it stared angrily at Grog, her claws raking across the front of the rakshasa. As it reeled back in pain, Keyleth let out a victorious sounding yowl. It pressed a pawed hand against the slashes in its chest, its eyes darting around the battlefield as it took in what was happening. Scanlan heard a door slam open behind him, but he paid it no mind as he focused on the creature. 

Sketching the shape of a square in front of him, he imbued it with as much power as he could. Scanlan held his breath as he pointed at the ground in front of the rakshasa, and prayed that it would work. Pike, seeing what he was doing, threw her hand towards him, and he felt his power increase slightly. Before the monster could react, a clear wall sprung up in front of him, quickly followed by walls on every other side. It slammed its paw against the arcane wall, growling in annoyance when nothing happened. 

Scanlan let out a sigh of relief, hunching forward to catch his breath. A hand came to rest on his shoulder, and surprise overtook him when he saw that it belonged to Pike. She gave him a short nod, a small smile on her face. He gave her a shaky grin in return as he tried to stop his knees from wobbling. From his hunched position, he could see Keyleth shift back into her half-elven form, a line of scratches bleeding through the back of her nightdress.

“Is that a-?”

“Rakshasa,” Kima said grimly, finished Allura’s sentence. 

The two stepped up to the Forcecage, inspecting the monster trapped within. It paced along the wall, snarling at them. Allura looked at it curiously, before turning to look at Scanlan. 

“How long will this last?” she asked as he stood to his full height. 

“An hour,” Scanlan said. “Maybe a bit longer, but not much. That took a lot out of me.”

“Plenty of time, then,” Gilmore said, coming to stand next to him. 

“For what?” Keyleth asked

“To ask it what it’s doing here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As a heads up, I'm assuming that everyone besides Pike is now level 14, while Pike is level 13. Since Scanlan is level 14, and is from the College of Lore, he can learn two additional spells from any class. I decided to have him learn Forcecage, because, honestly, it's a nifty spell, and important to this story. (I really needed to trap the rakshasa some how, lol.)
> 
> Everything below this is just things I rolled for the combat stuff, because it was fun.
> 
> **Initiative Order**  
>  1.Scanlan  
> 2\. Trinket  
> 3\. Pike  
> 4\. Percy  
> 5\. Hotis  
> 6\. Vex  
> 7\. Grog  
> 8\. Keyleth
> 
> **Checks, Spells, and Damages**  
>  1\. Scanlan - 19 on Arcana to recognize rakshasa  
> 1.5. Pike - 18 on Acrobatics jumping out the window  
> 1.75. Scanlan - 11 on Acrobatics jumping out the window, taking 1 point of damage from the fall, was not knocked prone  
> 2\. Hotis - Claw Attacks against Keyleth, doing a total of 17 damage  
> 3\. Keyleth - Reaction Bite, beating AC of 16 with 18, and doing 15 points of damage  
> 4\. Vex - Two arrows that missed, neither with magic imbued, neither would have damaged Hotis  
> 5\. Grog - Three attacks with the Flaming Warhammer, with 2 nat 20's. However, since the Warhammer itself is not magical (I believe - not entirely sure on that), the fire damage is the only thing that takes. 30 points of damage.  
> 6\. Keyleth - Claw Attack, beating AC of 16 with 19, dealing 7 points of damage,  
> 7\. Scanlan - Forcecage at 7th level, rolled a 14+10 which was 24. Hotis failed its saving throw, and is imprisoned inside for one hour.  
> 8\. Pike - War God's Blessing. Added an additional 3 points to Scanlan's roll, bringing it to a 27
> 
> **Total HP of everyone involved**  
>  1\. Hotis - 31 HP  
> 2\. Vex - 81 HP, cursed  
> 3\. Keyleth - (Regular form) 99 HP, (Minxy) 35 HP, cursed  
> 4\. Grog - 180  
> 5\. Pike - 80  
> 6\. Scanlan - 108  
> 7\. Percy - 106  
> 8\. Vax - ???


	5. Revelation

Scanlan looked like he was about to collapse on his feet, she could tell. As much bluster and showmanship as he put into his appearance, being woken up in the middle of the night didn’t do anyone favors. The adrenaline high from fighting had almost drained completely from her system as well, and Pike could feel her mace growing heavier in her hands by the second. Hoisting it up onto her shoulder, she gave Scanlan’s shoulder another pat before joining Kima, Allura, and Gilmore in front of the arcane prison. 

“- not much I can do,” Pike heard Kima say as she stopped next to Gilmore. “Even if I banished it back to the Nine Hells, it could find its way back here.”

“It can hear you,” the rakshasa hissed from behind the wall. “And I will remember this, paladin.”

“Good for you,” Kima said in her forthright way. “I don’t care. So, anyone else have a suggestion?”

“Why did it come after us?” Pike asked. “I’ve never even fought something like this.”

“I did,” Keyleth said. They turned to her, watching as she held a glowing hand to the wound on her side. “When we joined the Slayer’s Take, it was our quarry. We thought it was dead-”

“Oh, I very much was,” it said, a hint of smugness to its tone. 

Kima glared at the rakshasa out of the corner of her eye.“They don’t tend to stay dead. An abhorrent trait if you don’t know ahead of time.”

“A whore hen?” Grog asked.

“She means bad,” Pike explained, giving her goliath friend a smile. Grog looked confused, and Keyleth patted his shoulder gently. “It’s a bad thing. A very bad thing.”

“Yes, that,” she agreed. “Which means, even if we kill it here, it will come back again.”

“Wouldn’t that be fun?” 

“Shut. Up,” Kima said, turning the full force of her glare on the monster. 

A faint, almost familiar, light shimmered around the paladin, giving her an ethereal glow. Pike reached for her amulet as the glow intensified for a moment, feeling the warmth of Sarenrae fill her and chase away the night's chill. The rakshasa looked at Kima before tracking to her. Whatever it saw, it turned away from them, stalking over to the opposite side of its current cage.

“Then how do we kill it?” Vex asked as she leaned on Trinket. 

Trinket growled at the cage from under her arm, but was careful not to jostle his mistress too much. Now that the half-elf had joined them, Pike could see the wounds that were soaking her chest with blood. Her symbol already in her hand, Pike concentrated for a moment and lifted her hand towards the ranger. Vex straightened and took a deep breath, sending a thankful smile to her.

“I don’t know,” Kima replied. “Fiends of this nature were never one of the enemies I had ever thought to face. My talents are more towards fighting dragons or those corrupted by evil, than creatures that come from it.”

“We have less than an hour,” Keyleth said, looking to Scanlan for confirmation. “Talking about this isn’t going to do us much good.”

“No, please, deliberate about my fate. It will make our next meeting so much more enjoyable.”

“So I can’t just kill him?” 

“If you do, he’ll just come back,” Vex said.

“So we just kill him when he comes back.”

“Grog,” Pike said. Grog frowned, but gave her a short nod of acceptance. 

“If I may?” Gilmore asked. They all turned to look at him, and saw the considering look that he had towards the rakshasa. “These creatures are impossible to kill except on their home plane, correct, Kima?”

“As far as I know.”

“Then, Kima, if you were to banish it, I believe I could ensure that it would never return.”

“Are you sure, Gilmore?” Allura said. “I’ve no doubt that you can do it, but crossing the planes is dangerous.”

“My dear, hopping from plane to plane is a simple thing once you get the hang of it,” Gilmore said in an attempt to pacify her. “If you’d like to accompany me-”

“Thank you, but no,” she declined. “I’ve been to the Hells before. I’d rather not attract the attention being there gathers, especially with our situation as it is.”

“Will it alert others to Whitestone?” Vex asked. 

“I’ve been there before,” Gilmore told them. “While Allura is correct that the attention one gathers there can be problematic, I do not believe any would connect my being there to Whitestone, may Bahamut strike me if I lie.”

Kima rolled her eyes at his statement. “Don’t say things like that,” she muttered.

“So, what, Gilmore’s going to kill this thing?” Grog asked, sounding slightly put out. 

“Would you care to join me, Grog?”

“No, he wouldn’t,” Pike said, lifting an eyebrow at Grog. He shook his head sullenly, the flames on his warhammer winking out of existence.

“Then we are agreed?” Gilmore said. Pike nodded, noticing as everyone else followed suit.  “Excellent. Kima?”

The paladin gave him a short nod as the silver mist that had enshrouded her body grew brighter. The rakshasa, ran forward, snarling as it beat its paws against the arcane trap. A few words in a language she didn’t recognize, spewed from its mouth. As the light began to drift towards it, it reached into its pocket and pulled something out, dropping it in the grass. It snarled something at Vex, sounding triumphant. Vex jerked backwards as if stung, confusion written plainly across her face. It was gone in the next instant, and with a pop of displaced air, Gilmore vanished from their group as well.

“What did it say to you?” Pike asked. Vex shook her head, running up to the wall.

“Scanlan, drop this thing,” Vex said, sounding frantic. 

“But what if it comes back?” he asked. 

“Then it bloody comes back!” she shouted. “Drop it!”

Pike watched as Scanlan gave Vex a confused look, but did as she asked. Vex dove for the ground as soon as it was gone. She rose to her feet just as quickly, a small item grasped between her fingers. Pike squinted, just barely seeing a twinkle of light as it caught the faint torchlight. The shape and size was familiar to her, and she reached up to her ear at the same time as the ranger.

“Vax?” 

The earring vanished into Vex’s palm as she waited for a response. Pike looked to the others, who shared similar looks of confusion with her. Keyleth, as Vex repeated herself over the earring, pointed at each of them, mouthing the numbers as she did. A look of horror crossed her face as she looked back to the window they had all ran out of. Pike followed her gaze, but only saw Percy and Cassandra talking inside the ruined opening/ 

“He’s not-” Keyleth started to say, before clapping her hand to her mouth. 

“Vax!” Vex screamed, as loud as she had when she had called for help. No response came, and Pike realized what had her so frightened.

Vex ran past them, entering through the door that Kima, Allura, and Gilmore had come out of. Pike followed, feeling Grog’s heavy footsteps behind her. Their chase led them outside of Vax’s door, which stood slightly ajar. Vex stood in front of it, her hand raised to push it, a look of horror on her face. She glanced at Pike as Percy came running down the hall. In that one instant, Pike saw the fear she herself felt when Grog had sprawled lifeless at her feet. 

“I can’t,” she whispered, a unshed sob choking her words. “Pike, if he’s in there, I can’t...”

Percy pushed Vex to the side gently, and opened the door. Pike grabbed Vex’s hand, giving it a squeeze as he vanished into the room. A few seconds went by, with Vex’s hand growing almost unbearably tight around her own.

“There’s nobody in here,” Percy called out. “Nothing seems to be missing.”

“He’s got to be around here somewhere,” Keyleth said, sounding almost breathless. “Maybe if we split up? We’ll cover more ground.”

Vex nodded, letting go of Pike’s hand. “I’ll go search the basement.”

“I’ll go with you,” Percy said, coming out of the room. “If he was smart, he might have ran to the ziggurat.”

“Pike and I’ll check the top floor,” Grog said. 

“Are we even sure he’s missing?” Scanlan asked. “He could just be on a nighttime stroll through the woods.”

“Scanlan,” Pike said. He looked at her, the joviality dropping from his face at her somber look. 

“I’ll check the first floor,” he said. 

They all split, Kima and Allura looking at one another before following Scanlan. Pike followed Grog, passing a very confused looking Cassandra, as they made their way to the landing. As they crested the third floor, Grog held up his hand, before pointing at a few disturbances in the dust. They looked like footprints, leading towards the far end of the hall. A strange shape, almost like a balled up rug, lay halfway down the hall. Her stomach sank, but she slid around Grog and ran to it. 

As she drew closer, she could see the spill of blood that extended from Vax to the open balcony doors. It looked as if he had dragged himself inside, but had fallen unconscious where they found him. Pike pulled her holy symbol from her neck, holding the polished metal in front of Vax’s mouth and waiting. A thin mist formed, and she let out a breath she hadn’t known she was holding. Closing her eyes, Pike reached for Sarenrae divine light and focused.

Vax gasped beneath her hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Thursday guys and gals! And this is just about done.
> 
> Epilogue should be up shortly (or at least before episode 58's broadcast - I hope!)


	6. Reflection

The light in the room was too bright. Vax blinked, trying to adjust, and tried to raise his hand to rub at his eyes. It didn’t move higher than half an inch, and his mind flashed back to the robe that Gilmore - the rakshasa illusioned to look like Gilmore - had given him. As he panickedly tried to move, the weight that had been on it moved, and two hands grabbed his shoulders.

“Brother, calm down,” Vex said, leaning over the bed. Dark shadows lurked under her eyes, as if she hadn’t been sleeping; or, if she had, it hadn’t been restful.

“Vex?” he asked, trying to sit up. The motion was vaguely painful, and he pressed his hand to his abdomen. It felt like there were light bandages wrapped around his torso, under the nightshirt. Vex gave him an amused smile, lightly smacking his shoulder.

“Congrats on not dying,” she said, sitting back down in the chair next to his bed. She held up a hand as he opened his mouth. “We killed the rakshasa, don’t worry about it.”

“Don’t worry about it?” Vax said. “It’ll just come back until it kills us.”

“Well, it would,” Vex agreed, “if it hadn’t been killed in the Nine Hells. I’m pretty sure it’s really, really dead.”

“How long was I out?”

“A day or so? Pike worked really hard to make sure you didn't die, by the way. You should get her something really nice.”

“You went to the Nine Hells and came back within a day?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” she said. “Gilmore took care of it. You should have seen him when he got back. I almost think he wished he could have killed it again with how angry he looked.”

Vax leaned back against his pillows, looking out the frosted window across from him. “And you’re okay? Nothing happened?”

“Trinket had my back,” she told him. “Also, is it always like that for you when you say  _ jenga _ ? Everyone coming in and fucking shit up?”

“Usually, yeah,” he said, reaching up and tucking a loose piece of hair behind her pointed ear. “Are you all right?”

Vex shrugged. “Just a little tired. Keyleth and I have been trading watches on your bedside.”

“Is that why you look so tired?””

“Well, that and the dreams.” She paused, before shaking her head. “Nightmares, actually.”

Vax leaned forward, grabbing her hand. Closing his eyes, he let himself sink into a light trance. Drawing on the divine power he still had no idea what to do with, he concentrated on his sister. In his mind’s eye, a dark stain spread up from the center of her chest, winding around her neck before forming a web-like cage around her head. With barely a whisper of power, he brushed it away like an errant cobweb.

When Vax opened his eyes, Vex was looking at him strangely. He let himself sink back onto his pillows, a satisfied smile crossing his lips. She leaned towards him again, her eyes narrowing as he continued to smile at her. 

“What did you do?”

“Did something hit you?” he asked in return. He gestured towards his own chest when she continued to look confused. 

“The rakshasa scratched me,” she told him. She stopped, then rolled her eyes. “This is one of those freaky Raven Queen things, isn’t it?”

Vax shrugged, which only seemed to further her annoyance. “Get some rest, Stubby. You look like you need it more than-” he yawned, cutting off the rest of his sentence. “Let everyone know I’m not dead. Get someone to look a Keyleth.”

“You sure you don’t want to look at her yourself?” Vex teased.

“I’m tapped out,” Vax said with another yawn. “Literally, I think. I’m going to go back to sleep.”

Vex nodded, not saying anything else. She leaned over, pressing a kiss to his forehead. As she left the room, he could hear the faint murmur of conversation, but paid it no mind as sleep claimed him again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's all folks! Hope you enjoyed, and I hope you're hyped for tonight's episode. I know I am!


End file.
